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Topic: [CHI] Tony Leung Chiu-Wai (Read 36362 times)

Great that Tony Leung is recognized for his talent worldwide. imo, He's one of the best actors not just in HK or China or even Asia, but in the world. He's great as a comedic actor but also an amazing actor in general, his serious-ness and action role are some of the best I'd ever seen.

btw, I heard that Robert De Niro is a fan of his. great that a famous hollywood actor even recognize his talent.

Hong Kong media are reporting that actor Tony Leung Chiu-wai has broken his left arm during a training session for Wong Kar-wai's upcoming kung fu movie THE GRAND MASTER. For the past seven years Leung has been prepping for the role of Ip Man in Wong's long in development, alternate take on the Wing Chun legend who is also portrayed by Donnie Yen in Wilson Yip's IP MAN and its upcoming sequels. Leung has worked closely with Ip's son Ip Chun and has been performing extensive body conditioning in the gym while practicing with various martial arts instructors.

During one of these training sessions on Monday, the 47-year-old actor reportedly surprised a Wing Chun master with a full-force attack. This apparently caused the master to react instinctively in self defense by kicking Leung's left arm and causing the unintended break. Leung immediately fell to the floor and was subsequently rushed to the hospital where x-rays revealed a bone break. Leung has refused to use a cast as he fears muscle atrophy. Regardless, he'll be out of commission for some time until the arm heals sufficiently. In response to this injury, Leung said that he has gone into the project mentally prepared to suffer injury and expects the actual production to be worse.

This, ladies and gentlemen, is dedication and the reason why I and so many others have such respect for Hong Kong's veteran actors and stunt professionals. You won't see any Hollywood actor training for seven years for a single action-oriented role or brushing off injury so easily. My fear though is that Leung may be pushing himself too hard to match the better-trained Donnie Yen, especially since Yen was nominated by the Hong Kong Film Awards for Best Actor in IP MAN earlier this year. Comparisons will undoubtedly be made between the two performances. However, I'm certain that Wong Kar-wai has a different vision for his version of Ip Man, just as I am certain that Leung will deliver another excellent performance.

THE GRAND MASTER is currently scheduled for release in 2010, although depending on how long Leung's injury takes to heal it could be pushed back. The film also stars Gong Li who reportedly will play a female martial arts master, which would be a first for the veteran mainland actress. Brigitte Lin, forever the indomitable 'Invincible Asia" to many fans, is also making a comeback in this movie. Her last role was in Wong's wuxia masterpiece ASHES OF TIME, originally released in 1994 and re-released in a revised director's cut in 2008 as ASHES OF TIME REDUX.

Already eight years in the making, Wong Kar Wai's 'The Grand Master' will officially start filming in November. As Tony had broke his arm training for the movie, filming was delayed for two months while he recovered. Earlier on, Tony began training anew and has fully immersed himself into martial arts again. Even the Wing Chun masters who have been training Tony have praised his understanding and skill in Wing Chun. Tony is preparing to film 'The Grand Master' in his best form.

Does Light Exercises While Recovering

Tony's been training at the martial arts school under the guidance of Master Yip Siu Hung and his disciples. While he had to stop training during his recovery period, Tony was still able to do light exercises. He says that kung fu training is something you can never get enough of anyway. Tony expressed that the past two months have been like an extended holiday. His doctor had strongly advised him to wait at least three months before doing any vigorous activity. After resting for a few weeks, he began exercising again to keep his body in shape. Everyday he'll run for one or two hours. He also arranged for one-handed fitness sessions at the gym to keep his arms and legs in shape. In order to keep his arm immobile while running, he had to bandage it tightly to prevent any movement. Whenever he saw people on the streets, they would kindly ask him how his recovery was going and reminded him to be more careful.

Best Actor to Play Yip Man

Master Leung has been very satisfied with Tony's performance. He especially admired Tony's 'never give up' attitude. He has high hopes for Tony in the role of Yip Man. He believes Tony's spirit, appearance and comprehension is very similar to Master Yip Man and is the ideal candidate to play him.

Director Gao Xixi has announced that Tony Leung will be the lead actor in the movie version of the television series "Lurk," according to the website Chinafilm.com.

Gao said he had been waiting for an opening in Leung's schedule so he could star in the film. Leung should be available for filming in the second half of the year.

Gao also said Fanny Shu who will star opposite Leung in "Lurk" has not confirmed her schedule yet, as her other film "If You Are the One 2" will be also shooting in the second half of the year. Both Leung and Shu are two of the busiest actors in China's film industry.

As for the difference between the movie version and TV series "Lurk," Gao said while the two only share the same name, the storyline in the film version is totally different.

With more and more celebrities and other public figures joining day by day, Weibo (Asian Twitter) has definitely taken the entertainment industry by storm!

The newest celebrity to join Weibo is multi-Best Actor winner Tony Leung Chiu Wai (who only joined day before yesterday). On his first Weibo postings, Tony indicated that currently, in addition to being busy with the filming of "Grand Master", he has also been working on a commercial – in his posting, he uploaded a picture of himself with cinematographer Xia Yong Kang as well as other crew members. After only 1 day, the popular actor already has over 26,000 fans “following” him and one posting alone already has over 2,200 replies.

Tony’s wife, actress Carina Lau, also joined Weibo yesterday and posted 1 message so far, stating “Hi Everyone, I am Carina Lau”. Tony and Carina have yet to “follow” each other on Weibo – in fact, so far, both of them have only added production company Jet Tone Films to their “Follow” lists.

Hong Kong actress Cecilia Cheung will star with Tony Leung in Derek Yee's new film which will begin shooting next February, Cheung said recently in Shanghai.

When Derek Yee replied to questions from the Hong Kong press, he confirmed that this film will be Cheung's first since giving birth to her two sons in three years.

The film, entitled "Da Moshu Shi" ("Great Magician"), is a story about two childhood sweethearts set during the early part of the twentieth century. Yee had intended to keep the film a secret until it was discovered by the Guangzhou Daily. Information about the film was found on the Web site of the State Administration of Radio, Film, and Television (SARFT).

"Great Magician" is in line with "The Illusionist", a period drama based loosely on the Steven Millhauser story "Eisenheim the Illusionist", which was later adapted to the American big screen by Neil Burger. Actor Edward Norton starred in the film with Jessica Biel and Paul Giamatti. The film tells the story of Eisenheim, a magician in early 20th century Vienna.

Derek Yee's version occurs during the same period in China. Tony Leung is set to play the role of the intelligent illusionist, while Cheung will play a concubine to a warlord.

The director collaborated with Cheung in "Lost in Time", which helped her win the best actress award at the Hong Kong Film Awards in 2004. And the last time Cheung and Leung worked together was in the action comedy "Tokyo Raiders" eleven years ago. "Leung is cool and gentle. I feel very lucky to have the chance to work with him again," said Cheung.

After Carina Lau was photographed with a Mainland rich man, husband Tony Leung's mood has been pretty bad. Earlier when he attended to an event in Shanghai, he even canceled reporters' interview, which isn't his usual style of answering any type of question. Tony is back home after several days. Yesterday he shopped alone in Central. Wearing a sunglasses, he was asked how come wife Carina wasn't with him? When he heard wife's name, Tony only smiled and didn't answer. He then got on his car and left. It seems they ironed out their problem already.